Towing a trailer can be a dangerous activity both for the towing individual and individuals in other vehicles. Mechanical issues such as flat tires, non-functioning tail lights, disconnected safety chains, etc. may cause hazardous driving conditions or risk catastrophic equipment failures. Moreover, trailer contents can shift, covers and/or tie downs can become dislodged, doors can become unlatched, etc., potentially resulting in cargo being ejected from a trailer, causing not only property damage but hazardous conditions in the roadway.
Similar issues arise with respect to recreational trailers such as pop-up campers, travel trailers, or fifth wheel trailers, as well as vehicle trailers such as car trailers, boat trailers, motorcycle trailers, personal watercraft trailers, and snowmobile trailers. Other types of cargo carrying trailers, such as horse trailers, semi trailers, flat beds, etc., may also incur substantial risks, as may vehicles towed via tow bars.
Compounding these risks is the fact that in many cases, the hazardous conditions to which a trailer or other towed vehicle may be subjected may not be readily apparent to the driver of the towing vehicle. Often, a towing vehicle has limited sight lines to the towed vehicle, e.g., in the case of a recreational vehicle (RV) towing a car or truck, a truck towing a semi trailer, a truck towing a boat or travel trailer, etc. Even an RV can present a multitude of hazards, such as steps being left down, exterior doors being left unlatched, etc. As a result, an individual may drive for a substantial amount of time unaware of potentially hazardous conditions that, if known earlier, could have been avoided.
Likewise, other personal and real property, when left unattended, may be subjected to hazardous conditions. Docked, moored or stored boats may be damaged by weather or vandalized if left unattended. Vacation homes such as cabins and beachfront property may likewise be damaged by severe weather, or may be broken into or vandalized when an owner is not around. Unattended docks may be damaged due to changes in water level.
In each of the aforementioned examples, however, a potential exists that an individual other than an owner will notice a potentially hazardous condition pertaining to personal or real property. For example, an individual in a car following a truck towing a boat may notice a flat tire or malfunctioning lights, or may notice life vests blowing around in the back of the boat. An individual in a car following an RV towing another car may notice a towbar coming loose. A neighbor may notice that a tree has fallen on a vacation property, or that a water leak is causing flooding in the property.
It can be difficult, however, for an individual noticing a hazardous condition to alert a property owner of the condition. For unattended property such as vacation homes and boats, it may not be easy to find the identity of or contact information for a property owner. Furthermore, in towing or other moving vehicle circumstances, individuals may be reluctant to alert another driver of a hazardous condition over concerns over road rage or mistaken intentions. Furthermore, even if an individual would like to be a Good Samaritan and alert another driver of a hazardous condition, attempting to get the other driver's attention can present additional risks. For example, it can be extremely difficult to get the attention of a driver of a vehicle with limited rear visibility on a two lane road, and some individuals may attempt to make a risky pass in order to get in front of the other driver so that driver can be alerted to the dangerous condition.
A property owner might consider displaying contact information (e.g., a telephone number) on a towed vehicle or other property, such that others could contact the owner in the event of a hazardous condition. Doing so, however, brings with it a host of problems, most notably exposing the owner to harassing calls or enabling others to otherwise misuse their private information.
In a related field, “how's my driving” services exist for many commercial vehicles. A sign or bumper sticker is typically placed on the rear of a delivery van or semi trailer, encouraging others to call a telephone number on the sign or bumper sticker to report instances of bad driving. Callers speak with a customer representative to log their complaints, and the complaints are typically forwarded to management for possible disciplinary action against the driver. However, even if an individual attempted to use such a service to report a dangerous situation, such systems do not provide any way of alerting the driver of the vehicle of that situation.
Therefore, a need continues to exist in the art for a manner of alerting property owners of potentially hazardous conditions associated with their property.